New Cross Hospital wins £1m grant for premature baby research

The grant from the Department for Health and the National Institute for Health Research is the largest ever given to the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, which runs the hospital, and the biggest for neo-natal health service research in the West Midlands.

The study, called Opti-Prem, aims to improve neonatal service delivery for babies born between 27 and 31 weeks of gestation in England, by providing evidence-based data. The data will be used to develop national policy on how to best care for these babies.

The Trust, which runs New Cross Hospital, is leading the study, working with partners that include from parent support group Bliss, University of Oxford, University of Leicester, Imperial College London and the Neo Natal Data Analysis Unit. It has been given a grant of £924,000.

The clinical lead neonatologist for RWT, Tilly Pillay, is the study's chief investigator.

She said: “Currently babies born between 27 to 31 weeks of gestation may be managed in either a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) or a local neonatal unit (LNU). There are 77 LNUs and 44 NICUs in England. The decision on where individual babies are born is based on mother’s choice at booking, presentation to the nearest hospital and cot capacity at the time of delivery.

“Significant new evidence shows that care in a NICU, as opposed to a LNU, has benefit in terms of improved survival to discharge for those born at less than 26 weeks gestation; this is shaping policy for this group in England. In contrast, there is little evidence to guide care of the larger number of babies born between 27 and 31 weeks of gestation.

“It is possible that the bigger babies in this cohort, may benefit from being cared in a LNU while the smaller of the group, in a NICU. Our research will determine which environment offers the best clinical outcomes for babies at each gestational age in this group, and will take into account parent and staff perspectives on best place of care.”

The study began on April 1 this year and ends in 2020. It will analyse data on approximately 24,000 babies born prematurely between 27 and 31 weeks gestation in England between 2014 and 2018. It will conclude with recommendations which are to be developed on where best these babies should be born and cared for in the future.

Ms Pillay added: “It is incredibly good news for RWT and for all our partners. This is a further step towards ensuring that these pre-term babies receive the right care in the right place at the right time.”

David Loughton, hospital chief executive said: “We are thrilled to be the sponsor trust for this research project. It will provide scientific evidence on where it is best, safest, and most family friendly to provide neonatal care for babies in this group, which must be a big plus for health services in England. We look forward to supporting Dr Pillay and her the team on their journey.”

Bliss chief executive Caroline Lee Davis said: “We is delighted to be supporting the research project, which is looking at the best place to care for babies who are born between 27 and 31 weeks gestation. BLISS champions the right for every baby born premature or sick in the UK to receive the best care. We particularly welcome how the voice of parents, babies and their families have been involved in every stage of this project.”

BAPM president Alan Fenton said: “We are looking forward to the results of this project which may inform future service delivery for babies born between 27 and 31 weeks.”

More information on the study can be found on the RWT website royalwolverhampton.nhs.uk.